14-11-2007
Flexible businesses better positioned to meet customer needs
Introducing flexible working patterns can help small firms to adapt to their customers' needs, according to one expert.
Lynette Swift, of Swiftwork, has said that although less rigid working patterns can be disruptive to small firms, it can "make a small business more agile and responsive to customer needs and business conditions".
Swiftwork provides assistance to firms wishing to modernise their working practices.
Ms Swift continues that small operations - such as painters and decorators - can use less rigid working patterns to cope with changing seasonal demands and out-of-hours customer service enquiries.
However, the flexible working expert did add any change in working patterns should be managed "correctly".
In terms of concerns over whether or not flexible workers are covered by business insurance, those working from home could be covered by a firm's public liability insurance.
Research from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, shows that 13 per cent of all employees have requested flexible working since the legal right was introduced in April 2003.